How to Take Care of Cabbage Plants

Healthy cabbage keeps in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Cabbage plants grow easily and provide beneficial nutrients, but you must provide the plants with proper care to nurture their growth. A cool-season vegetable, you can plant cabbage in spring to harvest before the hot summer months or plant them in late summer to harvest before first frost. Purchase cabbage plants from your local nursery or -- if you have room -- start seeds indoors about 60 days before the last spring frost. You can use cabbage to make coleslaw and sauerkraut, or you can wrap the leaves around a savory meat mixture to make cabbage roles.

1

Loosen the soil to a depth of about 12 inches before planting to make it easy for roots to spread. Till about 4 inches of compost and other organic material, such as aged manure, leaf mold or sphagnum peat moss into the garden soil to improve drainage and soil structure.

2

Set transplants outdoors for a few hours each day to harden them off before planting in the garden. Plants should be ready to plant after about two weeks and when all danger of frost has passed.

3

Space plants about 15 to 18 inches apart to allow enough room for the heads to reach maturity. Plant seedlings deeply, burying about half of the main plant stem. You can sow seed 2 inches deep in the soil, spaced about 2 inches apart in late summer for a fall crop; when seedlings emerge, leave only the best plants to provide the proper spacing. When your cabbage plants grow to about 5 inches tall, thin out extra plants to provide 18 to 24 inches of space between plants.

4

Spread a 1-inch layer of organic mulch around the plants, such as a mixture of compost, shredded leaves and manure, which insulates the soil, retains moisture and slowly releases nutrients in the soil. Replenish the mulch as the organic materials decompose.

5

Provide the plants with 1 to 1 1/2 inches of water each week. Place a rain gauge in the ground around plants so you know if you have to water the plants yourself. Apply the water evenly around the plants so all the roots have equal access to the water supply. Avoid watering directly onto the plant because water can pool up in the leaves. Regular, steady watering is important to prevent cabbage heads from growing too fast and splitting, a result of receiving too much water after a period of drought.

6

Remove the weeds around the cabbage plants regularly. You can pull weeds by hand if there are only a few weeds, but a garden hoe makes it easier to clear a large area of weeds, while also keeping the soil loose. If you use a hoe, proceed carefully so you don't disturb the cabbage roots.

7

Inspect the leaves and soil around the plants regularly for cabbageworms, which will eat holes through the leaves. Remove these small green bugs immediately so they don't destroy your crop.

8

Apply fertilizer to the plants when the cabbage heads begin to develop, choosing either a complete, water-soluble fertilizer or an organic fertilizer such as fish emulsion. Mix the water-soluble fertilizer in the water supply for easy, even application.

9

Cut cabbage heads from the stem with a sharp knife when they reach the size of a softball. Peel away the outer leaves and discard. You can harvest fall crops when they grow beyond softball size, if desired, because you don't have to worry about hot summer temperatures damaging the cabbage.

Things You Will Need

Tiller

Organic soil amendments

Organic mulch

Garden hoe

Water-soluble fertilizer

Fish emulsion

Sharp knife

Tip

If your area doesn't receive any frost, you can grow cabbage plants over winter.

About the Author

A former cake decorator and competitive horticulturist, Amelia Allonsy is most at home in the kitchen or with her hands in the dirt. She received her Bachelor's degree from West Virginia University. Her work has been published in the San Francisco Chronicle and on other websites.